Monning's proposal quells contentious FORA meeting

Assemblyman Bill Monning appeared to broker a delicate peace Friday between proponents of a veterans cemetery and environmentalists fighting to save oak woodland on Fort Ord.

The turn of events came after four hours of contentious debate before and among the Fort Ord Reuse Authority board of directors, which was asked by the city of Seaside to confirm and map the location of the planned veterans cemetery on Parker Flats Road.

Support for the cemetery was nearly unanimous throughout the evening. At issue was a related request that the FORA board designate an accompanying piece of the parcel, called the endowment property, for residential use.

The property is the proposed site of the Monterey Downs equestrian-themed development and is designated as the source of funding for a state-mandated $1.5 million maintenance endowment for the cemetery.

FORA and its contractors have ignited a firestorm by announcing their intent to clear-cut 12 acres of oak woodland and vegetation to search for unexploded ordnance in advance of development that is not approved or even environmentally reviewed.

The issue has pitted Fort Ord recreational users and environmentalists who want to keep the endowment parcel in open space against veterans who want a final resting place. On Friday those vets were joined by vocal proponents of Monterey Downs, who support its plans for stables and a horse arena. Among those supporters were agricultural leaders Mike Antle and Jeff Taylor.

One Afghanistan veteran, Jan Ryan, spoke in favor of the cemetery from her wheelchair. Another speaker invoked the memory of Vilar Galarza of Salinas, who was killed in the war and whose father, a cauliflower picker, could not bury his son in a veterans cemetery because he had no transportation to the nearest national cemetery in Santa Nella.

The staff report gave the board three options: to take no action until local jurisdictions submitted land-use entitlements; to direct consultants to include the cemetery and endowment designations in the upcoming base reuse plan reassessment; or to immediately adopt the land-use designations for the cemetery and neighboring residential development to the current reuse plan.

Monning would later offer a fourth option, but not before some vigorous back and forth.

It quickly became clear that motion was not going to pass. CSU Monterey Bay representative Justin Wellner said the motion was unnecessarily rushing the matter and would violate the California Environmental Quality Act process at a time when FORA was already facing "perception problems."

Carmel Mayor Jason Burnett agreed with the sense of urgency to map a cemetery location that had long been agreed on verbally, but said violating process could actually slow progress for the cemetery by inviting litigation.

Echoing statements by a member of Veterans Wild Fort Ord, Burnett said Peninsula residents would likely open their wallets to raise the necessary $1.5 million if it was linked to an open-space effort. He offered to lead the charge himself.

Seaside Councilman Ian Oglesby reacted angrily, asking where those people have been for 18 years while veterans tried to raise money, and accusing the others of trying to rob Seaside of the opportunity to finally achieve some economic recovery from the closure of Fort Ord.

It was then that Monning, who was present to give an update on FORA legislation, stepped in with a solution. He suggested the board direct staff to come back with a fourth option, approving the designation of the cemetery parcel but delinking the endowment parcel.

Burnett moved to proceed as Monning suggested. The vote was 7-4 with Donohue, Edelen, Oglesby and Sand City Mayor David Pendergrass dissenting. Supervisor Dave Potter, whose friendship with Monterey Downs developer Brian Boudreau has been questioned by opponents of the development, voted in favor of delinking the two parcels.

The vote left Boudreau and fellow Monterey Downs developer Beth Palmer unhappy if not enraged. Palmer got into a screaming match with open-space advocate Luana Conley outside the meeting, calling Conley a "liar" before storming back into the meeting.